


The Void and the Exhilaration

by Valdyr



Series: The Angel Within [9]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angel Wings, Episode: s05e10 Abandon All Hope..., It's bad, Luci is such a Bad Influence on Sam, M/M, Made For Each Other, Samifer - Freeform, Withdrawal, but it gets better, going full Satan, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-06
Updated: 2017-05-06
Packaged: 2018-10-27 23:24:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10818945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Valdyr/pseuds/Valdyr
Summary: The Winchesters go after Crowley now to find the Colt, but when they find him, the real trouble begins. Lucifer had not expected the place to be warded against angels. He also didn't know that he had an appointment in Carthage, but better late than never, right?





	The Void and the Exhilaration

**Author's Note:**

> I would have had my two favorite rulers of hell meet here, but canon forbid it and working around that gave the whole part a new direction. I really like how it turned out, though. Hope you do, too!

The Colt could be found with a demon named Crowley. That sounded easy enough. Find Crowley, find the Colt. Then gank the devil. Except that finding Crowley was not exactly an easy first step for their plan.

Mainly because he was a damn high up demon. Lilith's right hand man and, as some demons they had interrogated had called him, the King of the Crossroads. They actually tried summoning a crossroads demon and demanding to speak to his boss after they heard that.

Yet it appeared that no-one was really eager to get on their superior's bad side. Now Dean could say that they had spent decades looking for Azazel, so they knew that finding a big demon was tough, but they also had much more experience now.

It couldn't be that hard, dammit! But most didn't seem to know and those that did know did not seem too eager to share their knowledge. It frustrated him! But his frustration made him bossy and that annoyed Lucifer. Which was not entirely a bad thing, while Lucifer cared about Sam and was thus restrained from causing him unnecessary pain at least.

So the next time a demon taunted them with not telling them despite knowning what they wanted to hear, Sam persuaded Dean to get a pie while he continued on his own and once the ignorant Winchester was gone, red eyes and the shadows of six flaming wings gave the words "You will tell me where Crowley is right now" all the weight they needed.

When Dean got back, the demon was dead and Sam had an address. It wasn't even too far away. But what it lacked in distance, it certainly made up for in fortification.

'Shit.'

'Yeah, I mean we can try climbing it, but... can you tell how many guards he has?'

'Well, there are about five demons in there, but that's not what I meant.'

'No?'

He sighed and mumbled at Sam not to gasp or anything and then another layer of sight was raised before his eyes and revealed the entire wall to be covered in light blue symbols that seemed eeriely familiar. Yes, he knew them or similar ones at least! They had also covered the building in which Alastair had tried to kill the reapers. They had... shit. They had kept the angels out.

'Indeed. Enochian warding to stop angels from entering.'

'Please tell me that you are strong enough to enter anyway, because I really don't know how to explain to Dean that I can't come in with him.'

He felt a wave of discomfort answer him and knew that Lucifer was too embarrassed to speak, but there was a thread of something else in there, too. He had an idea that it was not something he wanted to hear, but lacking better options he tugged it anyway.

'To my defense: Those wardings are not simply directed at angels in general, some refer to me in specific. But I could still overcome them. It takes more than a couple scribblings with invisible ink to lock me out.'

'This _is_ more than that. But you can resist it?'

'I can overcome it indeed. It's just...'

'Yes?'

'I don't know what to do with Dean. The only way for me to pass that wall is to shatter it first, break the line of salt so to speak. I could fly up and crash into the ground right in front of it like a comet. If I bundle up enough energy on the flight and abruptly release it on contact that should send a good part of the wall up and  through the air in pieces. And create a crater. It would make the warding useless.'

'That ...um... sounds loud.'

'Exactly. I should still be able to go after Crowley before he gets away, if he is inside, which we don't actually know for sure. And even if I knock Dean out for the duration, that kind of impact would still create a little earthquake and if I am seen on the flight, which is not too unlikely since bundling energy will light me up like a Christmas tree, I might make it onto the news. Now considering that we have apocalypse time and comets are rather omen-ish...'

'He would find out afterwards.'

'Comets don't fly into walls for a habit, many will find out and Dean knows who lives here.'

'Damn it! What do we do?'

'I don't know, Sam. I'm sorry, but I really don't.'

'Fuck. Even you have no idea?! Can we... I don't know, can you make me fall sick or something?'

'You want to avoid this by calling in sick? Good luck avoiding suspicion by suddenly falling sick. It's not like that never happens to you without a supernatural cause!'

'Well, sorry! But what can we do? I can't go in there with you in me. ...not with you in me... Can you- Can you get out? Just for a day?'

He could literally feel his heart stutter and clench tight, the pain shooting through him like he'd been poisoned.

'You want me to go?'

'Wha- No!'

'You said so.'

'No, I- I don't _want_ you to go, but you can't enter and I must. So I just wanted to ask if - theoretically - you could step out just for a moment so I can go in and as soon as I'm out again, you hop right back in me. I really didn't mean that I wanted you to leave me. Trust me. I- I like you in me. I want you in me. Hell, it drove me nuts when you were just not talking to me anymore, even though I could still feel you! I don't want you gone, Luci. I really don't. I just might have to accept it for a tiny moment and then we'll be back together. Okay?'

'I see. Forgive my reaction. And yes, I could temporarily separate from you. But I must warn you, we absolutely have to minimize the time we will be apart. We are meant to be together as one and now that we have united, our essences will not take kindly to a separation. It will take its toll. And it will get worse the longer we are apart. And, Sam, you must also consider that I won't be able to help then. There are five demons in there. It will be dangerous. And even if you pray for my help, I won't be able to come to your rescue.'

'It's alright. We were hunters before I met you and it was dangerous, but we still survived.'

'You didn't actually. Both of you died.'

'Okay, but we have much more experience now. And we have the knife. And soon we will also have the Colt. It'll be alright.'

'Sam, I hear your thoughts, not only what you choose to tell me. I know how scared you are.'

'I'm not stupid, that raises my chances.'

'But I won't leave you alone to _chances_! Get Dean to call in help. Tell him you don't know how many demons are in there and it's too important to risk failure. The wait for their arrival will also give you a chance to deposit me, but I won't have you going in there with just your brother.'

He was tempted to sigh at Lucifer's over-protectiveness. But it might very well be justified, so he tolerated Dean's frustration until the older Winchester accepted that they wouldn't get in there and out again alive without some kind of help.

And so the Winchesters called on the Harvelles.

 

He had feared what the devil's words would mean for him. For both of them. But he had not feared it enough. When he left Dean for a 'call of nature' and found a secluded area for Lucifer, the bad feeling in his guts had grown. But not nearly enough. Lucifer whispered 'sorry, Sammy' and he felt like he was getting ripped apart.

When the archangel left his true vessel, both of them suffered for it and the only reason Sam did not scream in agony was because the angel was blocking his mouth. It hurt that much. And then it was over. Lucifer hovered in the air like a blazing wad of white light, still with a web of red streaks cutting through it. Or rather weaving through it.

In another state, Sam might have teased his lover for the pinkish effect of red capillaries on white ground. But he was in no state to tease. For a moment he was reminded of his demon blood detoxing adventure. But in direct comparison, that had been more like ripping a barbed hook out of his flesh. It hurt as it left, but he also knew that was a foreign object in him. Now, though...

Now it felt like a part of himself had been torn out of him. Like someone had cut him open and torn out all his vital organs, leaving him not only injured, but completely empty. Like a werewolf had broken into his chest and snatched away his heart to eat it. He trembled with sudden weakness as the power of the angel that had been supporting him for so long was just gone. He knew he was sweating and his senses seemed so dimmed.

He felt miserable as he looked up from where he had sunken to his knees and watched Lucifer. He seemed so small now, and still so bright. Almost blinding. And anyone else to behold him like this would certainly have lost his eyes. But not Sam. That very light had shone through his eyes from within for long enough to be able to bear it now. He could stand it. But it still hurt. It hurt so much that his entire being felt like a single gaping wound.

He struggled to stand up again and swore to Lucifer that he would be back as soon as he could. Very soon, he promised. And then he struggled to go, all the while trying to make himself appear normal again. It took longer than his excuse could cover for, but Dean's sense for time was already strained from waiting on the Harvelles, so he didn't make a fuss, and the oncoming night covered the deathly pallor of his face on the glassiness of his eyes.

He was still a bit wobbly by the time Jo and Ellen arrived, but as they went about their attack, the adrenalin kept him upright. They got in, the girls cut the power and the boys set a trap. And it looked so good until suddenly Crowley stopped mid-sentence and looked down. He had found the trap. Well, shit.

Now Sam panicked and then demons had them and he wanted to cry and pray for Lucifer, he felt so weak. He was only half. But he couldn't pray. Lucifer couldn't come, so calling him would only serve to torture the angel. It would only scare him. He couldn't help. They should have just exploded the wall. But now, without a vessel, without a grip on earth, the archangel was considerably weakened and Sam felt completely useless.

Jo and Ellen were still there, but on the other side of the building. The only consolation was that with two demons dead and three within their sight, at least the Harvelles were less likely to be ambushed, too. But the plan had failed. He was lost and now the demons had him and Dean and they would- Wait, what?

He stared at Crowley in shock, exchanged a glance with Dean who had a similar reaction and went back to staring. This Crowley had seriously just killed his own henchmen. Now he wanted to talk. And talk he did and with none of the threats or taunts or insults they could have expected from a demon.

No, he expected their gratitude and acted like he had told them about the Colt in the first place. And then he told them to empty it into Lucifer's face. Okay, one: That was far too handsome a face to destroy it so. Two: Only over Sam's dead body. And three: Why? Why the hell would a demon want the devil dead?!

He asked out loud, too. The last bit. And well, that explanation was actually kind of sound. Demons were not usually that clever. But with how Lucifer had reacted to being called a demon, Sam was quite sure that if he intended to exterminate mankind, demonkind would be next indeed. And then the demon held the Colt out to him. Like he would just hand it over to them.

For a moment Sam was tempted to refuse it. He wouldn't kill the devil, never! Not that the Colt could kill the devil, as he knew from experience. But it would be suspicious, so he controlled himself and took it with a shaking hand. The demon raised a brow at that, but likely attributed his shaking to fear. Devil withdrawal was not exactly a probable cause in most cases, after all.

He really gave them the gun, though. And then he just waited. Like a normal person, not an unusually clever demon. The gun alone wouldn't get the devil dead, however, so on a whim he asked if the demon happened to know where the devil was, fully expecting the answer to be some kind of snarky remark about how they could do some  work, too, and find him themselves. Yet that was not what he got.

"Thursday, birdies tell me he's got an appointment in Carthage, Missouri."

What? When was he supposed to have gotten that, Sam had been with him all the time and he had no idea?!

"You sure?"

"No, moose, I am not sure. Hence the 'birdies tell me', instead of for example 'I happen to know'. It's a marker for hearsay. Got it now?"

And the snark was back. He answered with he best bitchface his health allowed and Dean jumped to his defense against the clever demon:

"And how exactly does Lilith's right hand not know where the devil is?"

"Easy. For one, I am the one that warned her that the apocalypse might not be the best idea, since starting it would cost her life, but working out a deal with you two clearly didn't work, and Lucifer's fanatics didn't like my caution too much. But above all, I don't know for sure because nobody does. He is supposed to come to Carthage, his fanatics are preparing for him to come, but nobody can tell if he will show up, because he neglected to tell anyone. Or show himself at all."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I am saying that while we all know that he walks the earth, not a single demon has seen him since. Or at least, none lived to tell the tale."

"Bull!"

"I don't particularly care if you believe me. Just go kill him, would you?"

"For real?! Everything that's been happening...!"

"Clearly worked well by itself. But this apparently requires his presence. Will you accept to do your duty as righteous man and hunter now and kill the bloody devil?!"

"Yes! ... You said Carthage?"

"I did. In Missouri."

"Alright."

Dean nodded to him and to Sam and once more for good measure, while Crowley stared at him visibly torn between rolling his eyes and shaking his head. What a moron. But then he looked back to his brother and the path of his eyes made words redundant.

Sam aimed the gun and shot the demon in the face. Or he would have. But the gun just clicked. Shit, now he could- Oh, right. The little fucker just liked to mess with them. But he hid his smile as he walked around his desk to get them ammunition. And Dean used the chance to ask another question, which was answered by the same snideness that this demon seemed so fond of.

Then they had the bullets, but the demon was gone. He had to tell Lucifer about this. But just the thought set the gaping void in him aflame again. He need to be whole again. He needed his angel back.

On the way out they reunited with the Harvelles, showed off their prize and agreed to return to Bobby's first to get an overview over the situation. They were wasting time. And with the adrenalin leaving again, Sam got shakier. So shaky Ellen asked about it. But that was also a chance. He said that he felt like he ate something bad and mimicked retching. With that he excused himself and as soon as he was out of sight, he ran for Lucifer. Even though some of that running was more stumbling.

The achingly bright light had never seemed warmer and it beamed at him and he almost shouted yes to the heavens and then it already washed down his raw throat again like water in the desert. All the wounds, the pain, the emptiness was soothed and bliss flooded every corner of his being.

'Sammy!'

'Luci, I missed you so! It hurt so much, but I'm back!'

'Oh, I noticed. Took you long enough. I was getting worried! What happened?'

He first wanted to tell him, but thought twice and then just remembered, thus letting Lucifer see.

'This Crowley is quite interesting.'

'Clever, right?'

'He is indeed. The demons have evolved in my absence. They didn't use to be like that. But I assume most are just as mindless as then still.'

'Hm. ...Luci, what is in Carthage?'

'I honestly don't know. I didn't know I am supposed to go there. But I haven't really been up to date at any point of this supposed apocalypse. Now I wonder what else I have already missed...'

'But what now?'

'Now you will return to the other hunters. We'll see what happens. Who knows, they might even figure out what's up with Carthage. Okay?'

'Yeah.'

'You don't sound too well.'

'I'm getting better.'

'...'

'Luci?'

'I shouldn't have divided us.'

'No, it's alright. I'm getting better.'

'But you are not good. I should- ...'

'Lucifer?'

'I want to help you, make you better, but it would complicate everything.'

'How? Do what?'

'It's... Sam, you do know that we are not completely one yet, right?'

'What, no?! Why not?'

'Well, at first I didn't want to freak you out completely and now we still have to keep a cover of humanity.'

'What separates us still?'

'You still eat and drink and sleep, don't you?'

'Yes?'

'Angels don't. I am still partway keeping out of your body's needs so you won't forget and make Dean wonder how you didn't eat anything in a month or something like that. It's so tedious to remember, I just left things as they were. And it was better now or our separation would have been much worse on both of us. But you are not recovering as well as you should now.'

'...Then do it. Unite us completely.'

'Sam, if I do that, another separation could drive us completely mad, even kill us.'

'But I never want to be apart from you again.'

'What about Dean, though?'

'Dean? He didn't notice that I was addicted to demon blood until I got a fix right in front of his eyes.'

'True. But are you sure? This is not something to be decided lightly.'

'I am absolutely sure. Lucifer, I already can't imagine living without you anymore. So do it, make us one.'

And the feeling that followed was as intoxicating as it felt purifying. His body lost the last of its humanity, but it felt like ascension. He felt high, yet clear. He felt the full power of the archangel. There was no return now, but he didn't care. He could not have suffered the void for good even before. But now he truly was part of one greater being. Two halves of one whole combined. Grace and soul melting together inseparably.

This was salvation. It was... exhilaration.

'Amazing.'

He could feel the devil preen and smiled as he went back to the humans. It seemed little, but the little things made the day. So now they had to research Carthage.

 

And even if the devil wouldn't show, Carthage was definitely a case. The missing persons of that place were sky-rocketing, so it did not seem presumptuous to agree to all go. Bobby insisted that he was perfectly healthly and would not sit on his ass for a single day more while they were out there fighting the apocalypse and Sam agreed with a smile. But with that, Dean turned to him:

"He can come alright, but you won't."

"...Sorry, what?"

"You heard me. You're not coming."

"But why?!"

"You think I forgot? Or that I didn't hear it?"

"Dean, what are you talking about?"

"Gabriel! I'm talking about what Gabriel said. You know, I really thought you were gonna comment on it at some point, but you didn't. And it was okay, because I didn't want to think about it, either. But now clearly we have to, because I refuse to bring the devil his VESSEL!"

"Oh."

"Oh? Now? I saw your reaction then, Sammy. There wasn't one, no 'Oh' there! You knew it before he said it. So how about we have this talk now? How did you know and why the fucking hell didn't you ever bother to tell me that you are Satan's true vessel!!!"

Damn. He had totally overlooked that. And now he needed answers and they were all staring at him in shock, Bobby most of all. Bobby, who knew about the angel in him. Fuck!

'It's alright. I don't like to lie. I usually don't and I would never lie to you, but since it's how you humans work, I can help you out. Just let me.'

'Okay, thanks.'

"I- uhm... He... He came to me in a dream."

"What, Satan?! How could you not te-"

"'Cause I was sick of your judgement, okay?! And I could handle it on my own."

"Oh yeah?"

"Clearly. He asked me to let him in, I said no, he tried to persuade me, I told him to fuck off. He wasn't happy, but he just said that it was my destiny, so he already knew that I would say yes and then he left."

"And you want me to believe that?"

"Like we've never fought a monster with hubris before."

"So he just left you alone? Like hell, Sammy."

"How long has it been since Zachariah last crossed our path, Dean?"

"..."

"And you have to consider that Zachariah is just one of many. A henchman. The devil has to lead his side. Dude's busy!"

"Well, clearly he hasn't been. No demon's seen him."

"I will go with the 'none lived to tell the tale' option. He spent the last couple milennia in solitary confinement. Trust me, he's been talking to someone. But with the temper of an archangel, I guess that someone needed frequent replacement if they annoyed him. And how would anyone know? Demons are like weed. Who'd notice if some went missing?"

Dean clearly wanted to argue, but didn't have an argument to use right there and then, so Lucifer decided to put him out of his misery.

"Okay, fine. I won't come along."

There was still doubt, so he rolled his eyes, put on his best bitch face and gritted out: "You can lock me in the panic room, alright?"

Now Dean's brows shot up and he instantly took the offer before Sam could reconsider. They went down together, as Bobby and the Harvelles each opened a new bottle of liquor. They had to process the news first.

Nearing the room, Sam asked if Lucifer was sure, since they had tried to protect the room against angels when they brought Anna, but Lucifer just chuckled inside.

'You saw what it takes to lock me out and I could still have gotten in. This place does not have the power to inhibit me. A lesser angel sure, but not an archangel in his true vessel. Try blood sigils and then I'll worry.'

Appeased he went in and let them lock the door. He didn't like being left behind, but he could accept that Dean had needed that. The pain at hearing Gabriel's story had let him forget that Dean had not previously known about the vessel thing, or rather that he himself should not have known at that point. That couldn't happen again.

But his guilty conscience did not get the chance to fully unfold. Not when Lucifer purred that they would be alone together for a while now. So maybe this was not too bad...

He was only jerked out of his pleasant dreams once. Bobby opened the door. The shock had hit him worst. And for a reason.

"Sam, you- you're angel. Your passenger, he..? I mean don't get me wrong, but... How did the devil visit your dreams with-"

"He didn't. Sorry, but I needed an excuse. He didn't, of course. I haven't heard of him. But I couldn't just tell Dean that my internal angel remarked how valuable a vessel I was and whom I was actually intended for, right?"

Bobby sighed in obvious relief and agreed before leaving. He really couldn't be honest. Not with anyone, but Lucifer.

 

The hunters were long gone by the time they ended their session and decided to rise again, but the drive would take them longer to Carthage then that, so they could not be in danger yet. Then Lucifer willed the door open again, still a little pissed about the anti-demon measures around him, but mostly sated from fucking Sam senseless a few times over, and they flew off.

Within a moment, they were in Missouri. and Carthage lay empty before them. Or not empty. Lucifer kept his perception human most of the time, so he wouldn't react to something he shouldn't be able to see, but for a moment again he upgraded his senses to show him the reapers, before letting them return to normal.

'Why are there so many reapers?'

'For the same reason I am meant to be here.'

'You figured it out?'

'Yeah, I did. Carthage was the scene of a great massacre while back and now there are loads of reapers. I am supposed to raise Death here.'

'Death?'

'The horseman. He's locked up right now and I am one of the few that know how to get him out. But none of those are demons, only angels. As we locked him in.'

'Wow. Wait, didn't War say-'

'War insulted me. He did not aim for absolute accuracy. The paradox of the hyperbole, it is a lie to amplify the truth. So yes, they need me. No one else who could would to it and nobody who would do it could.'

'But you won't right?'

'Never! He's dangerous, you know?'

'Even for you?'

'Even for me. Not like the ugly little liar like to say, but dangerous.'

'Hm?'

'He used to say he was a old as God and capable of killing even Him, too.'

'He could?!'

'He says so, but it's a lie. Only the Darkness is as old as God. But that's irrelevant now, there are souls coming.'

The hunters had arrived and first of all wasted their time aimlessly wandering around. The angel followed them unseen, but then he sensed demons. He changed course and the sensation grew. In the end he found an entire horde of them gathered above the former battlefield. There was also a mass grave with the rest of the town's population.

'Oh no, we're too late. They are all already dead!'

'Not all. The possessed ones are still alive in there. But they might whish they were dead. All the women and children are.'

Sam could have screamed. How many had died?! For nothing! But then there was a strange, prickly sensation by his ears. They itched and warmed. At least that was what it felt like. In reality, they were perfectly normal.

'Luci, what's happening?'

'Wow.'

'Luci?'

'I can barely believe it.'

'Luci!'

'That's prayer.'

'You're being prayed to?'

'No, that's the point. It's you!'

'What? But I'm human!'

'We are one, Sam. You will never be just a human again.'

'Oh-kaaay. So? What now? I don't hear anything!'

'Right, you're not used to this yet. I'll turn it up for you.'

_"Sam? Sam, boy, please, or your angel, if either of you can hear us, please come. We're in Carthage in a store. There were hellhounds. Please, we need you! Dean's outside, I sent him scouting for an escape route. Sam or his angel, please help us!"_

'Bobby!'

'He said Dean's outside, but what about the other hunters?'

'He also said that there _were_ hellhounds. Lucifer, I think someone might be injured. You healed him when you met and now... Lucifer, if Jo or Ellen are injured! And by a hellhound!'

'You want to go?'

'Yes! We have to help them!'

The devil was distrustful, but then he remembered that Sam had heard a prayer. They were so close already. Despite their separation. That had to be rewarded. So he flew them to the origin of the prayer.

 

Ellen gasped when Sam appeared out of thin air, but his eyes found Jo first, her side ripped open by the claws of a hellhound. And she was bleeding out. He cursed inside, but for efficieny's sake Lucifer was in charge of their body right now, so there was no outward reaction or stupid questions about anyone's wellbeing. He just strode over and knelt down next to her.

"Can you heal her?"

It was Bobby, who had spoken, and they could guess what had happened. Jo had been injured and everyone had gone crazy, but Bobby had remembered his own incurable injury and how it had been cured, so he had sent Dean away with an excuse and told Ellen about the angel, betting that she would cling to her daughter's one shot at survival more than to her prejudices as a hunter. Going by her eyes right now, he had bet right.

Lucifer took in the wound and estimated his options. Then he spoke, as cold and detatched as they would expect of him:

"I could, but it would raise questions."

"I don't care, just save my daughter!"

He narrowed his eyes at her in warning. Cover or no cover, he did not take orders from random humans. In the end Bobby had to mediate.

"Can you just heal it mostly? So it's still there, but she'll live? Make it just scratches, maybe?"

That sounded a lot better, both more realistic and more polite. So he laid on finger on Jo's skin above the wound and instantly the blood flow lessened, the lost blood was replaced inside her and the almost blackish red revealed by the claws faded into light red as the wounds lost their depth. They were just scratches anymore. Bothersome, but definitely not fatal.

"Thank you... You can't help with the devil, can you?"

"Only Michael could fight him. ...Were did the hounds come from?"

"There was this demon, Meg, she greeted us and was all smiley-faced about getting a welcoming present for her daddy. But we didn't like the idea of getting gift-wrapped for the devil, so she set those beasts on us."

"I see. Perhaps I will be able to deal with her. But if the devil nears, I will have to take Sam away from here."

"We understand. Good luck, and thank you."

He nodded and was gone in the blink of an eye. Meg. The demon that had possessed Sam. And apparently also the demon in charge around here. She seemed worth a closer look. But without human witnesses, he did not need to hide in Sam for that. This was demon in need of a lesson. And in the end, she was expecting _the devil_.

So why not give her what she wanted? Careful what you wish for, he thought. And with that he left the town on speeding wings to reaarange some things. He was a ruler, he would not show up in plaid. Now he would personally like a white suit best, it would look good on Sammy, but he wasn't sure yet whether he wanted to reveal his vessel's face, so he picked something else.

He wore black. Leather boots and velvet trousers both just as black as the hooded coat. Because he wanted to impress and he wanted Dean to cease chasing after him with that stupid gun, so he had to let him see its uselessness. And that meant a meeting with the humans.

'I won't hurt them, I swear. I just want to give them a fright. Don't you want big bossy brother Dean to cower before you? Just once?'

He didn't. Not really. Not the dominating part of him at least. Okay, maybe he did. Damn it, he wanted it. He had enough of being seen as just baby brother Sammy, who still needed to be protected. He was an adult, not some kid anymore. He had enough of Dean acting like his superior, just like dad. So yes, a growing part of him wanted to turn the tables.

And Lucifer was gleeful at that permission. No human would be hurt. However, he would be the devil today. In all his glory. And while he didn't have the horns and tail in reality that he was so often depicted with, he did have wings. Wings that were usually invisible to humans. But not necessarily.

When Lucifer proposed materialize them, Sam somewhat dreaded it. He imagined that wings pushing out through his back might hurt. So Lucifer suggested that they just visualize them, which would cause him no discomfort whatsoever and he agreed, eager to see what he would look like with wings. Lucifer found a mirror to show him and knelt down in front of it, bending over and just looking up, with the cloth riding up on his back. As an angel Lucifer could already see his own wings, but human eyes were not capable of that. So to show the hunters, he had to light them up.

And the light was beautiful. Sam gasped when his back began to glow, and then six little white dots appeared. Those drew lines then, two crossing diagonally over his shoulder blades like a V with an open bottom, two trailing just beneath his shoulder blades at a wider angle and the last two at an even wider angle over his lowest ribs.

Then the glowing lines lit up to shine like searchlights, beams reaching up to the ceiling. The beams got brighter and then they bent, creating two angles each. At the first the bent towards his head and at the second back down. The beams narrowed and brightened until their exact shape became clear. Like the featherless wings of a bird. But they did not remain featherless for long.

Their surface sparkled like a disco ball's for a moment and the next had thousands of new beams shooting out of them, narrowing and brightening into a stunning white plumage. Only then did red flames flicker alive on their edges and tint them crimson. His eyes lit up to match them and he stood up, stunned by his own appearance. So that was the devil. But not quite.

He untied his hair and let the long strands fall into his face, before pulling the hood down to cover about half of it. He did not look like Sam anymore. But wouldn't they still recognize his voice?

'Not if I mix mine into it.'

He remembered Dean's description of Castiel's true voice and nodded. He was fit to go play devil.

 

Back in Carthage, or rather above it, he searched for Meg and found her pacing on a rooftop near the still caged hunters, clearly waiting. Well, she shouldn't have to wait for longer, now should she? He neared from behind her and landed without a single sound. Still, she sensed him, he saw how she tensed. She knew that there was an angel, but not which one.

And unlike Azazel she did not just run assuming the worst. He could hear her breathing get labored with excitation. She was ...hopeful? She didn't know, but she wanted it to be him. A fanatic, Crowley would have said. But an influential one, so he didn't kill her outright.

He hummed with the voice of an angel and muttered sweetly, mock-hurt:

"Does my dutiful daughter not wish to greet me?"

But even so he could not have forseen the fountain of bliss and arousal spweing from her voice and face when he whirled around and almost threw herself on her knees before him:

"My prince! You came! I had already feared my hope would be in vain, my prince, no-one had heard of you. But you are here! Thank you!"

She was almost panting and Sam was a bit bewildered to find that her joy was indeed orgasmic. That was a bit much for him. She wasn't ususally like this, was she? When she had been in him, she had definitely been different. But that was also before she had met her idol, her god. So, he guessed, some fangirling could be expected.

Lucifer certainly liked it. He wasn't ususally fond of demons, mostly they disgusted him. But he had feelings, too. And there not many that worshipped him anymore. So he extended a hand to her and she instantly, reverently took it into both of hers with featherlight touches. And she kissed it, looking up to him with widened pupils and and an open-mouthed smile.

"I have trapped Dean Winchester and his supporters. And the sacrifices are at the battlefield, ready for the ritual."

She was so eager to please him. He remebered that. Once upon a time, he had been like that, too. It was devotion at work. Admiration. Faith. Not very demonic. They were usually more selfish than this. Humans at their worst. But Meg... He was not sure about her. Had she been just another demon, he would have questioned her and struck her dead.

But right then he reconsidered. A loyal demon, if such a thing existed, could be of great use to stopping the apocalypse. Unless, of course, if she only wanted him to get them the apocalypse. Demons were selfish creatures. He might very well be a means to an end for them. He had to be sure.

"I am aware."

"...my prince, does this not please you?"

"You are perceptive, demon. It does not."

She gulped and cast her eyes down, but to his surprise, there was no fear on her face. Most demons would be scared if they displeased the devil. But Meg... She seemed angry at herself, enraged almost, and full of regret. Fascinating. Even many angels would have reacted with fear if they upset their superior. Not to, despite knowing what that superior could do, spoke for a special kind of devotion. When one would willingly accept any punishment as deserved.

"Demon... Meg?"

Her head jerked up in shock that he knew her name and her entire being projected eagerness to obey whatever he was about to say.

"Would you still follow me if I told you that I won't lead you to heaven?"

Confusion was written on her face then, but only that, no aversion just yet.

"My prince?"

He couldn't deny the appeal of being called that, treated with such respect. It stroked his ego and sense of self-worth both. But this question was vital, so he didn't let himself stray because of flattery.

"God, my father, made this plan of the apocalypse for us. But I have no desire to execute his wishes. I rebel once more. I intend to save humanity instead and teach my father a lesson. They shall forget their faith and abandon him and all that he stands for. Thus I will force him to show himself. And then I will bring him to justice. So tell me honestly, do you want the apocalypse or do you want to serve me."

There was silence first as she processed all that. She had not expected this. Not at all. She thought they would rule the world, go to heaven. She had dreamt of it. But when he put it like that, she felt bad for it. She would have followed God's plan. Like a fool. Letting herself be led by that deadbeat father that had abandoned his children. His beautiful, brilliant son...

"I serve _my_ god. _Our_ father. You, my prince. And there will be no apocalypse without you anyway. So I take whatever you choose to give. My prince, what are your orders?"

He purred in delight, but did not answer yet. It was not only his decision.

'Sam? Do you want her dead for what she did to you?'

For a moment, Sam was surprised. This was devil business, but still he was consulted. Because they were equal, he felt the half-formed answer. But he had to think. Once, he knew, he would have killed her at once, if only he had had the knife back then. She had possessed him. She had made him kill. She had set hellhounds on Dean, Bobby, Ellen and Jo not one hour ago. She deserved it.

But looking into her wide, submissive eyes right now, he couldn't see the evil that should be there. She was a warrior, not a plague. She could be useful. She would do whatever he told her to. Well, whatever Lucifer told her to. But they were so close by now, that they might as well be one and the same. And still...

'No. But I want her to know.'

Lucifer handed over control and Sam moved his extended hand under her chin to tilt her head up and force her to look right into his eyes when his other hand pushed back the hood and the stark red dimmed to let her see his face. Her jaw dropped in disbelief.

"I am ordering you to let my brother go. Mask it so he'll think he escaped. But let them all out unharmed. Your survival is my choice, so don't try my mercy again."

"...Sam? I-"

"What? You didn't know that I am the true vessel of Lucifer as Dean is Michael's? Well, now you do. And I suggest that you keep my secret. We don't spent our time with demons, because we watch over Michael's vessel. All the time right in their midst."

"I see! You are brilliant, my prince. Sam... I thank you. I know what I have done. I am not really the kind to apologize, but trust me, had I known, I never would have done any of that. ...Should I free them now?"

"Yes. Meet me at the field afterwards. And make sure they can follow."

He spread his wings and with a single beat he was in the sky, where Meg's eyes followed his light. So bright, even as the distance grew. Like the morningstar in the night.

 

A scream tore through the air and the barking and banging against the door stopped short. There were some low yowls outside and the hunters exchanged a look. A nother scream followed in the same voice, Meg's voice as they realized, and the hellhounds ran off after the sound, barking so loudly all the while that their position was clear the entire time.

They were leaving. In fact, they had already left. Because Meg had screamed. Bobby and Ellen exchanged another look behind Dean's back; Had Sam's angel attacked her? If so, he was in trouble. That noise could draw the devil to him and that would endanger Sam, too.

They had to follow them. With the argument that the devil was likely there, they got Dean to agree. He had been much more pleasant since Jo's injury had turned out not to be as terrible as it had first seemed after all. But she was still not permitted to come along any further so they put her in the car and followed the noise out of the town  until they spotted bright lights. And what lights they were...

On a field there lay dozens of bodies, with only a few men remaining standing, arguing with the bright creature even as they shook with fear. They spoke about promised things and prophesies with fearful gazes all around themselves, at unseen hounds circling around them, while their mistress stood in front of them beside the bright creature.

Clothed in dark, but lit by crimson eyes and flaming wings stood what could only be the devil. He had come. And he was within reach. Dean readied the Colt, but was hesitant to shoot. He would have only one chance. Once they were noticed, they would be dead. He had half a heart to tell Bobby and Ellen to go back to safety, when something happened.

Meg hissed at the arguing men, but the devil laid what looked like a a placating hand on her shoulder. It was not placation, though. In retrospect, he had probably told her that arguing was useless or something like that. Because a moment later one of his wings jerked forth like the pincers of a mantis and cut clean through the speaker of the group. He lit up like a dying demon, probably was one, and collapsed.

The others stared at him for a moment and stepped back from the angel's wing, but clearly the prideful creature was at the end of his patience. He tilted the bright wing and jerked it back and forth, mowing through the group briefly and effectively. The pincers now a scythe. Then he pulled it back and folded all his wings neatly against his back, so they could see his body only against the light.

Beside the glow of his eyes, of course. But the concentration of those beams of red light did not allow them to reveal his face beyond a few locks of too long hair that fell in front of them. For a moment he was sorely tempted to know what kind of sick son of a bitch gave the devil his consent to use him as a vessel. But in the end, the poor bastard had probably been tortured into saying yes by a horde of demons.

Such as that bitch Meg, who clung to him now like the demon version of Becky around Sam, and asked for orders. Who even asked for orders? Directions, perhaps, maybe even to know the plan, but not orders. He half expected Satan to call her his slave, but he didn't call _her_ anything when he spoke, resonant and metallic and utterly inhuman:

"We are done here now, righteous man, in case you wanted an audience before I move on."

And with that he turned his head in one smooth move and through leaves and twigs looked Dean right in the eyes.

"Or are you too much of a voyeur to show yourself?"

Okay, this was as far from what he had imagined as it possibly could be, but it was show time now, he guessed. So he stepped out of the bushes and faced the devil.

"I don't have a problem with that. Why should I? I'm not afraid of you."

"I fully understand that you need to maintain that facade in order to be able to live with yourself."

"You think I'm kidding?"

"But Dean, even your fans admit that. How did they call it? Scared little boy, the secret life of Dean?"

And he froze. That had been said at the convention. With Chuck and Sam there. A prophet and a vessel the devil should never get close to.

"How can you know that?!"

"Just like I know what you're holding behind your back right now. Crowley warded his home against angels with remarkable skill. But really, there are no walls that can restrict me but those of the cage and now I am free of those. Give it a shot, self-righteous boy, I will keep still for you. But don't call it your victory."

And he spread his arms as if to show that he was unarmed. Like the devil needed a weapon. But Dean didn't know what to do. He was close enough to shoot him and he wanted to, badly, but if the devil was offering it, then surely there had to be a catch somewhere. He hesitated and the devil sighed heavily.

"Do I really need to make your baby brother my little bitch before you finally man up?"

That did the trick. Before another moment got the chance to pass he had already pulled the trigger. And over and over and over again. He emptied the gun into the devil's face. The angel staggered back, but then he just shook himself and chuckled.

"That all?"

He couldn't believe it. But then there was a flutter and the devil stood only inches from him, one hand in his hair, and pushed him down to his knees. He struggle against the angel's hold and pulled the trigger repeatedly, but there were just clicks, no bullets and then that son of a bitch whispered above his head:

"If we were enemies, I could make you watch my dutiful little demon torture your friends to death right now, snatch your brother and force his consent under the threats of horrors upon you, Dean Winchester. So be glad, be grateful, you idiot, that we are _not_ enemies. We are both rebels in the name of free will. Today I killed more than three dozen demons and aborted a ritual to raise the horseman Death. And what did you achieve to stop the apocalypse?"

He dropped him then and turned to Meg:

"Send your bitches back to hell and find Crowley. You can set others on the task as well, but warn them that I want him alive and in one piece. What giving the Colt to the Winchesters earned him is my decision and mine alone. Pray to me when you have him."

Meg nodded eagerly and disappeared with the hellhounds while the devil cast one last judging look down at his brother's vessel, before he beat his mighty wings strongly enough to make the nearby trees creak and vanished into the nightsky.

He left the vessel to think about his words, Sam still hoping that they might be able to convince him of who the enemy really was. For it was not Lucifer, but heaven.

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, no smut. But there was just so much content from that wonderful episode!
> 
> ...Did you like it?


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